Impenetrable Darkness
by Taline
Summary: A horrifying accident leaves Omi in a darkness he never imagined he'd have to face. WIP. Rated for language and violence. Please review.


Just a few quick author's notes: I formed this idea before Daredevil was even conceived, so I did not copy it. And I hope not to give anyone the impression that Omi's situation is similar to that horrible movie, because it's not. Just coincidence. I also am ignoring Gluhen's idea that Omi was the next Persia after Shuichi, for sake of story. And this was originally intended to be a one-shot, but because of the length, I think I'm going to chapterize it instead. Hopefully I'll get a chance to type the next part soon, if you all like it. REVIEW! PLEASE! I NEED REVIEWS!

*Spoilers* Takatori Shuichi (Persia's) death, Episodes 23-25 of the series

Warnings: PG-13 for language, violence, angstiness

Non-yaoi at this point. Sorry. Perhaps later, not sure. Want to try to write a non for once. Dunno if it'll turn out that way or not.

~*~

Tsukiyono Omi hummed softly to himself as he sorted several long-stemmed carnations into an arrangement he had been working on for most of the afternoon. It was a wedding centerpiece, and the bride had insisted that it be as big and grand as the occasion demanded. Scarlet roses red as Aya's blood red hair were clustered in tiny bundles with baby's breath and fern leaves, white carnations and lily-of-the-valley blossoming in various places, a pleasant contrast from the roses.

Omi loved flowers and what they symbolized, and he was pleased at the bride's selection. Red roses for love. Ferns for grace. Baby's breath for happiness and pure heart. Carnations for innocence and good luck. And Lily-of-the-valley for making life complete. He couldn't have picked a better assortment himself, and he had made sure that the flowers he had chosen would be the biggest, brightest, most beautiful blooms. And the colors! If there was one thing he liked more than what flowers meant, it was the colors. The vibrant splashes of color warmed his soul like wildfire and brightened him up whenever he was down. He stepped back to admire his handiwork, his rosy face lighting up at how well it was turning out. He reached for another flower. Just a few more touches…

"Omi!" Ken's brunette head appeared around the doorframe, almond-shaped aqua eyes searching the cluttered workroom.

"Hey, Ken-kun." Omi looked up at his best friend and beamed brightly. "Something wrong?"

"Iie, nothing wrong. But Birman is here. We have a mission tonight."

"Tonight?" Omi asked in dismay. "Does she need us now?"

"Hai. The shop's closed up, and she wants to brief us as soon as possible, because timing is going to be critical here."

Omi nodded and set down the handful of lilies he held. "Be right there, Ken-kun."

The brunette nodded and disappeared as quickly as he had appeared. Omi reached behind him and undid the ties on his apron, pulling it off and hanging it up on the hook by the workbench. He picked up the flowers and placed them in the cooling unit to keep them fresh until tomorrow when he could finish it and deliver it to the church in time for the 2 o'clock service. Tomorrow being Saturday left him lots of time to finish it. He closed the door of the refrigerator and wiped his hands on the thighs of his jean shorts, then snapped off the light and hurried out of the room, through the darkened shop, through the doorway that led down to the mission room. He met Yohji on the stairs. The lanky playboy offered him a small smile, stepping aside to let him pass. "Hey, chibi. God, I hoped we didn't have to do anything tonight."

"Big date tonight?" Omi teased his oldest teammate.

"Hot date tonight. Might make you nosebleed with the details, Omi-chan." Yohji's perfect smile was lecherous.

Omi turned bright red and hurried down the stairs. His sneakers clanked softly on the metal staircase, announcing his arrival to the assembled group that was waiting for him. He smiled and sat down on the sofa. Birman, her raven hair swept up into a ponytail at the back of her head, gave him a quick glance, then popped in the videotape that she held in her hands. Aya reached over from his spot leaning against the wall to dim the lights, and the tape started.

The silhouette of the new Persia appeared on the screen, and Omi felt a small surge of relief. It had been a bit disconcerting to see his long-dead uncle Takatori Shuichi on the screen after he had been so brutally murdered by his older brother, Takatori Reiji, only six months ago. After Kritiker had nearly fallen to pieces after the whole Esset fiasco, Weiss had gotten a new Persia, Birman's commander.

"Men of Weiss, your new mission is this: There is an underground market that has been experimenting with new chemicals that could be potentially used for biological weapons. As far as we know, none of deadly force have been produced, and the scientists are being extremely cautious with them, but, as long as they are alive, the likelihood that harmful biological weapons will be manufactured is a dangerous possibility. They have already sold several prototypes to underhand government dealers, and they are beginning research on a more massive scale. Hunters of the Night, deny these evil beasts their tomorrows." The screen went blank.

As the lights came back up, Birman turned to the group, brushing a few stray hairs out of her eyes. "This mission is of extreme importance because it is so dangerous. Once you have taken out the targets, you are to call Kritiker's headquarters immediately, and they will send a containment crew to get rid of the chemicals properly. It's too much of a risk for you all to do it yourselves. But we would like as much information as possible on the composition and structure of these chemicals as you can retrieve."

She glanced at the four men. "It will take all of you to complete this mission."

Ken, Aya, and Omi nodded slowly. Yohji merely pulled out a cigarette and put it in his mouth, but a glare from Aya kept him from lighting it.

Birman was handing around a manila folder. "All the information on the building is in here, as well as the profiles of the six scientists. Tonight is the best time to take them out. Our spies say they have been talking about relocating soon, and we don't want to lose them."

Everyone nodded again. Omi took the folder from Aya and studied the pictures of the scientists. None looked extremely diabolical, but that was often the case with their targets. Respectable-looking people outside, criminal masterminds on the inside. He passed the folder on and leaned back in his spot. Birman glanced around, then turned and headed for the stairs.

Aya pushed himself off the wall and gazed around the room. "The mission commences at twenty-one hundred hours."

~*~

The security system had been too incredibly easy to crack. They may have been scientists, but security was obviously not their forte. Omi had the system down in less than thirty seconds, and Weiss slipped inside, down several flights of stairs, to the underground laboratory.

The first two scientists were quickly and easily taken out as they were headed back from the nearby bathroom. Aya took the security access cards from their pockets, ensuring an easy entrance into the main chamber.

The scientists inside weren't completely unprepared, but they were lousy shots. One scientist was dead before any of them had time to grab their firearms from under a nearby table, neatly decapitated with one yank of Yohji's wire.

Weiss scattered as the first bullet ricocheted off the walls. Omi ducked and rolled under a nearby table, covering his head as the bullets flew randomly around him, shattering glass beakers, clanging like gongs against metal tables, dull thunks warning of bullets embedding in walls. He pulled out one of his poisoned darts, shifting his position to let it fly. But the scientist had retreated too far for him to get a clean shot. He grabbed for the crossbow that was strapped to his back, loading it with a bigger, more deadly arrow. He waited for a moment, then leaped to his feet, taking a quick aim at one of the scientists.

Unfortunately, just as he tensed the trigger, Ken and Aya, with short-range weapons, stepped closer, and Omi was forced to pull the bow up, the arrow sailing wildly upwards and striking a metal pole, gouging a huge hole in the support. He worried a moment he might not be able to get to the scientists, but Ken and Aya did not fail him. Two of the scientists went down in a splash of blood. Omi let a poisoned dart fly, catching the last remaining scientist, a spindly middle-aged woman, in the neck. She screamed and crumpled to the ground, writhing and jerking as the poison took effect, then laying still and cold. Omi let a self-satisfied smile cross his lips as he pocketed the last handful of darts. He took a step towards his comrades…

He heard a creak above his head. Omi looked up just as one of the pipes he had hit supporting a storage tank above his head broke with a horrifying screech, and the container tipped. He didn't have any time to even think about moving before a wave of white hit him full in the face, the force driving him to his knees.

All of a sudden, there came a searing pain in his eyes, the most exquisite pain he had ever felt, burning, sharp, agonizing. He opened his mouth and screamed, his black-gloved hands flying to his eyes. His skin felt like it was on fire, hot and burning like liquid plasma, but his eyes… He could taste something in his mouth, bitter and lukewarm, before it started to sting and burn too. He screamed again in agony, his hands pressed frantically to his face. The only thing he could hear was his screams, the only thing he could feel was the pain…

"Omi!" came a cry nearby, but he barely heard it. He screamed again, tears in his burning eyes searing like salt acid. Oh, Kami-sama, it hurt… Please… Take the pain away…

The next moment he felt a pair of strong, leather-clad hands on his, trying to pry his own hands away from his eyes. He screamed and tried to resist. No! Don't! It hurt too much! His eyes hurt…

Aya struggled against the young archer's shockingly strong grip on his face, ignoring the strong bleach that stained his leather trench coat and gloves. "Omi, stop struggling! Let me see!" He could barely hear his own voice over Omi's screams. With a quick, sudden jerk, he dislodged Omi's hands and was met by a horrifying sight.

Omi's large, pretty, blue eyes were tinged bright red, and there was a flood of crimson blood and pink-tinged bleach running down his cheeks. The skin on his face was painfully red and growing redder still. But his eyes… He could not even see the blue through the scarlet blood that seemed to trickle from deep within them to his cheeks.

Omi screamed again, the sound the most agonized cry Aya had ever heard. The ravaged eyes vanished behind the walls of his eyelids that matched the burned skin of his face, obviously trying to get rid of the pain he was in. Aya glanced up in panic just as Yohji and Ken raced over, skidding to a stop next to them, their faces filled with horror.

"Water! Now!" Aya snapped.

Yohji reached into his coat and drew out a tiny flask of water they carried for such emergencies, handing it quickly to Aya. Aya took it, fumbling to uncork the lid. "Omi, close your mouth," he ordered the screaming teenager.

Omi could vaguely hear Aya's bass voice through the barely conscious pain he was experiencing. But he could not bring himself to obey the command through the pain that lanced through his face in a fierce, stabbing throb. He screamed again, hands struggling to free themselves to seal over his eyes to try to protect them. Strong hands held them away in a tight, firm grip. He tried to scream again, but a heavy hand sealed over his mouth like a lid, cutting off all sound except for soft, pleading whimpers.

The next moment, something cool and soothing flowed down over his face. Water! Pure, cooling water. It flowed over his burning eyes, stinging, then leaving a healing coldness over them, a painful tingling. He could feel water, bleach, and blood washing down his face, cleansing his agonized wounds from the harsh bleach that was stinging his sensitive skin. He could feel tears running down and mixing with the water, stinging his eyes even more like salt acid. He cried out in pain again around the leather-clad hand that covered his mouth, and he felt strong, gentle hands stroking his back soothingly. He could vaguely hear Aya talking in the background, but the pain was too terrible to understand what he was saying. The agony in his eyes burned his whole body like fire, and he shivered in the grips that held him.

"It's all right, Omittchi," he heard Yohji's voice in his ear. "Just hold on." He whined softly in acknowledgement, his throat feeling sore and raw from screaming, his tongue feeling as if it were swollen. The hand over his mouth gently released him.

"Aya-kun…" he begged, his voice rough and barely audible. "It hurts too much…"

"Shh… The paramedics are on their way…" Gently, gloved hands touched his cheeks, but even the soft touch felt like a red-hot poker on his skin. He yanked away and almost lost his balance off his knees. Arms went around him to hold him up, and he curled into them, his hands pressed to his eyes again. He shivered violently, sobbing in pain as gentle hands stroked his jacketed arms.

Yohji glanced worriedly up at Aya and Ken from where he held Omi, not caring about the strong bleach that was burning huge, gold patches in his navy coat. "Will he be all right?"

"If the paramedics get here quickly. Til then, keep him calm. I'm really concerned about where all that blood is coming from," Aya commented slowly.

"Fuck, Aya, he just got some of that goddamn acidic bleach shit dumped all over his head!" Ken nearly screamed, his whole body shaking from how tense with worry he was over the younger teen. "That stuff could fucking kill him!"

Omi let out a scream and tried to wrench out of Yohji's grip, but Yohji held him tightly. "Ken, shut the hell up! Shh, we won't let you die, Omittchi," he soothed, shooting Ken a pointed glare. "Just hold onto me, and you'll be all right."

"Y… Yoh… ji… kun… It… it hur… hurts…"

"I know. Hold on, bishounen. You'll be all right."

Omi couldn't hold back another scream of pain as a fiery sting lanced through his face again. Yohji gasped softly and quickly clenched his fist, pressing it to Omi's mouth. Omi gratefully clamped his teeth down on the soft glove, muffling his cries.

"Ken, get a sample of this bleach for the doctors. Move!" Aya barked. "Yohji, wrap him up in your coat so he doesn't go into shock."

Something warm wrapped around his body, encompassing him in a warm layer of softness. He moaned softly against Yohji's fist, trying hard not to cry, as tears just made his eyes hurt more. He clamped his teeth down on Yohji's hand again as the agony nearly forced him to black out. Yohji let out a sharp gasp of pain, and Omi realized his sharp, little teeth had broken the skin through the glove in his mouth.

Suddenly he heard the soft patter of several feet running towards them. He whimpered and shrank closer to Yohji. The lanky playboy held him tightly. "Shh… It's just the paramedics, Omi-chan. They're going to help you." Yohji stroked a hand through Omi's bleach-covered hair, hoping the nicknames he often called the pretty teenager would help to calm him.

Omi felt strong hands gently pull him out of Yohji's arms, and he cried out softly. Soft hands, they felt like Ken's, stroked his arm gently. Omi reached out for the person, but the pulsing pain came over him again, and his brain seemed to spin inside his head. He felt his limbs grow limp, and he fell backwards in a dizzying spin into impenetrable darkness.

~*~

He was vaguely aware of being in a moving vehicle… Of the presence of people leaning over him… Of his clothes being stripped away and cold water washing over his body… Of soft bandages and smelly antiseptics on his skin… Of a soft, warm bed with a huge pillow in some place that was not his own room…

He slowly awoke later, with sluggish movements, but, even as he blinked his eyes open, the world remained dark. He blinked again, then realized how stiff and sore his body was, how his skin felt as if there were hundreds of gnats crawling, biting, all over it. His muscles felt weak, as if he had just finished a long session at the gym. His mouth felt a bit thick, as if his tongue was swollen. He let out a soft groan that got stuck in his tense throat, then felt a gentle, heavy hand on his shoulder. He could feel the contours of both his own sore skin and the hand that held him, making him realize he was wearing a hospital gown.

"Stay still, Omi. You need to rest."

"A… Aya-kun?" he croaked softly, trying to reach out for the redhead he knew was standing close by him.

"Hai. Lay down. You need your rest."

"Wh… where am I?"

"Kritiker's hospital. The paramedics rushed you here."

"The information?"

"Oh, for Kami's sake, Omi, worry about yourself for once." That was Yohji's voice.

Omi's head turned towards the voice, tilting his head just a bit in a curious gesture of trying to find where the older blond was. "But-."

"Shh. The information is being taken care of, Omi."

"Ken-kun…" Omi reached out weakly towards the foot of the bed where Ken's voice seemed to be coming from.

Aya's hands gently but firmly pushed him back against the pillow. "You rest. Now."

Omi struggled slightly. "I want to go home, Aya-kun…"

"The doctors want to keep you under observation at least twelve hours, so you can go home later this afternoon."

Omi sighed softly. "Am I really hurt that bad?"

"They don't know."

Omi reached up to touch his face, his fingers barely brushing his skin that was burned bright red, gasping when his soft finger pads connected with a gauzy bandage that was wrapped around his eyes and head. Well, that explained why he couldn't see… "Why is there a bandage over my eyes?"

"It's just a precaution. The doctor says to leave it on for now."

"All right." The genki youth sank back down into the soft pillow. "You guys can go. I'll be fine by myself."

"We can stay a little longer, Omittchi."

"Arigatou, Yohji-kun."

Suddenly he heard the door creak open and a soft, female voice in an overly cheerful tone said, "Oh good, he's awake. Here, I'll just leave this medicine for him to take. Siberian, will you please see that he takes it? Thank you…" None of Kritiker's meds knew the real names of Weiss, and it was perhaps for the best. The doctor turned to Aya, the smile fading into a morose look of pity. "Abyssinian, may I speak with you?"

"Of course." The breeze wafted over Omi as the presence of Aya moved away from his side. He shivered and pulled the blanket closer.

A gentle hand touched his foot through the blanket. "Do you need anything, Omi?"

"No, thank you, Ken-kun."

"All right. Then take your medicine."

~*~

The pretty, young doctor smoothed down a raven-colored bun against the back of her head, then turned to Aya with concern in her coffee-brown eyes. "Abyssinian, I don't want to lie to you about how badly Bombay is hurt."

"Is he going to die?" Aya asked sharply. Surely Omi hadn't been hurt that badly…

"Iie. His burns will heal in time, and he should recover from that just fine."

"Then what?"

"We examined his eyes when you brought him in. The bleach… It was so acidic, it burned through the protective layers on his eyes…"

"What are you saying, Asaki-san?"

The woman took a deep breath and said, as calmly as she could, "He's blinded, Abyssinian. His eyes are so damaged, it's relatively impossible for them to recover. He'll probably never see again."

Aya's amethyst eyes were wide with shock. "Blind? O… Bombay is blind?"

"Hai. I'm very sorry, Abyssinian."

Aya swallowed hard against the lump in his throat that had suddenly come uninvited. "He doesn't know?"

"No. Not yet. We thought it best to tell you first so you could help prepare him for the shock."

Aya nodded slowly, pressing a fist against his forehead a moment. Blind… Omi was blind… A young man, barely older than a child, who had his whole life ahead of him… And now he was useless as an assassin… Of course, risk had always been involved in this job, but… Blind…

"He's going to need a lot of help," the doctor ventured slowly, as if afraid to speak. "It will be a tough adjustment for him. For all of you…"

Aya took a deep, shaky breath. "I should tell him…"

"Yes, that… that would be best. We'd like to keep him here a bit longer and run a few more tests. We need to see how extensive all the damage is…"

"All right." Aya stepped back towards the door, pausing with his hand on the knob. "There… there's no hope at all?"

"We don't know yet. It's not looking good…"

Aya nodded and twisted the knob, swinging the door open.

Yohji and Ken looked up from their spots, and Omi's heads turned sleepily towards the sound. The sight of his gauze-bandaged eyes and his red-burned skin almost brought tears to normally icy Aya's eyes, but he pushed them back and approached the bed, his katana by his side suddenly feeling like deadweight. "How are you feeling, Omi?"

"Just fine," Omi replied. Aya could tell the little blond was not telling the truth. But sweet, little Omi never complained about anything. He hated to lay his problems on others when they usually needed him more than he needed them.

"You can tell us, Omi," Ken said gently.

Omi sighed weakly, rubbing his bare arms lightly, then wincing and pulling his hands away. "My skin hurts. It stings… And… and my muscles all feel sore…"

"Well, don't worry, Omi-chan. We'll help you get better, and soon you'll be good as new," Yohji promised.

Aya shot a glare to Yohji and shook his head once in warning. Yohji raised a questioning brow as Omi murmured a drowsy thank you. Aya gave him another glare, then turned back to Omi. "We're going to go and let you sleep, Omi. We'll be back this afternoon to pick you up."

"Alright. Oyasumi, minna." Omi was fading fast.

"Oyasumi," Ken and Yohji responded.

~*~

Omi endured the doctors' poking and prodding, trying not to cry out when their cold machines or gloved hands touched his burned skin. They took the bandages off his eyes, but he still couldn't see. He mentioned it to the doctors, but Dr. Asaki assured him it was "normal". She did not, however, say when it would return. She just tied new bandages on and made him swallow a thick, liquid medicine that tasted nasty and made his swollen tongue ache.

He laid on the bed until one of the nurses brought him lunch that he could hardly eat with his swollen tongue. He managed to drink the whole glass of juice and a few bites of rice, but everything else hurt too much, and he gave up.

Someone entered his room again around one o'clock, waking him from his half-dozing rest. His head inclined towards the door, but he couldn't identify the person til they spoke.

"Omi, the doctor wants to talk with you."

"Aya-kun!" he said, a cheery smile finding its way to his lips despite the pain it caused.

"Hai. Dr. Asaki is coming in."

"Okay."

Someone softly entered the room, then approached the bed. "How are you feeling, Bombay?" came a sweet, female voice.

"A little better… My face and legs still feel sore."

"They will be for a while, especially since they were the parts of you that were exposed. Your clothing protected your arms and torso, which is a blessing. Your burns will heal in time, and they should not scar too badly. As long as you put on the salve we give you."

"Oh, good," Omi said with a soft smile. "I can do that… Can I take the bandages off my eyes now?"

"Actually, Bombay, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. You see… Your eyes were heavily damaged by the bleach… We tried everything we could, but…"

Omi's smile faded into a look of shock and confusion. "Nani? But what?"

"But we weren't able to save your eyesight. I'm very sorry."

Omi's mouth silently slid open, and Aya had the feeling he would have been staring at her in shock if he could. "Y… You mean, I…"

"You're going to be blind, Bombay-san. Probably for the rest of your life."

The words rang like a death toll in Omi's ears, and, before he could stop himself, a scream tore itself from his throat. "No! No, I can't! I can't!"

"I'm very sorry," Dr. Asaki repeated, reaching out to touch his hand. Omi jumped and jerked away. "There is the possibility of surgery, but-."

"I'll do it!" Omi cried, clenching his fists tightly. "Whatever the cost, I'll do it!"

"You can't now," the doctor soothed gently. "Your eyes are so irritated, it would be completely useless and might even damage your eyes beyond repair."

"Please… Please, you have to fix it…"

"Calm down, please, Bombay-san. I can't guarantee anything either way. We'll have to wait. But, being as honest as I can be, the odds are almost one in a million that your sight will return completely."

Omi let out a cry and started to rip the bandages off his face, but a firm hand on his stopped him. "Bombay, stop that right now!"

"Ay… Abyssinian…"

"Don't act like such a child."

Omi sniffed slightly. "Boku wa… Boku wa…"

"Can you leave us alone?" Aya asked, turning towards the doctor. She nodded and headed out of the room, closing the door behind her.

Aya surveyed the teenager for a moment. "Omi, you're alive," he stated.

"But… But I can't see!"

"But you're alive. There's something to be said for that."

Omi let out a soft whimper. "I… I'm helpless now…"

"Far from it. You still have all your other senses."

"But…"

Aya leaned down, and, in a rare display of affection, touched Omi's shoulder gently. Omi sniffed and reached up, clinging to the arm tightly, his face pressed against it. Aya let him hold him, feeling awkward, not sure what else to do. What did he used to do when Aya-chan was crying? He slowly reached out and gently stroked Omi's tangled, honey-blond hair. The gold waves felt soft even now.

Omi sniffed and rested his cheek on Aya's arm. "Aya-kun… I… I want to go home…"

"Sure, Omi. I'll go sign the papers and take you home."

~*~

Omi slept nearly all the way home. Aya drove a bit slower than usual so as not to jar him too much. It was obvious that even though he didn't want to show it, the young man was in a lot of pain from his burns. When they got home, Omi was only half-awake, so Aya carried him up to his room, somewhat doubtful of Omi's ability to take the stairs in his condition, then went down to talk to Ken and Yohji.

"Blind?!" Ken yelped, causing Yohji to slap a hand over his mouth to quiet him.

"Yes, blind. And we are going to treat him as if nothing is different."

"You've got to be kidding me," Yohji snapped. "He won't be able to work if he can't see colors or money. He can't go to school cause he won't be able to read. He can't go on missions anymore… Goddammit, Aya, what can he really do?"

"I don't know, but we are not going to baby him."

"What if he wants to be babied?"

"When has he ever?"

Aya had a point. Yohji went silent.

"Is he taking it hard?" Ken asked softly.

"Very hard. So we're not going to make it any harder on him. Help him only if he wants it, and don't keep asking him how he is." Aya's voice left no room for argument.

"Should we call his school?" Yohji questioned after an awkward silence.

"Hai. I'll call." Aya turned and headed up towards the kitchen.

Ken and Yohji watched him go. "Geez, this is horrible," Ken said softly, staring up the metal circular stairs of the mission room.

"Yeah. The chibi isn't going to handle this easily," Yohji replied, looking down at his hands folded in his lap. "And we can't do a single fucking thing."

Ken sighed and leaned back against the couch with a terrific headache all of a sudden. "Why him, of all people?"

"Cause life is not fucking fair," Yohji snapped, sinking his blond head into his hands. "Not fucking fair at all."

~*~


End file.
